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City Wrapping Up Splash Park And Trail/Park Projects

Thu, 09/13/2018 - 2:10pm

James B. Bartle

The City of Sullivan is finishing the 2018 park season with a flurry of activity with the recent completion of the Sullivan Route 66 Splash Park, paving of the new Wilson Trail, located on the north side of Sullivan, and Tessa Park/Trail located off Tessa Drive

On Friday, the long awaited Route 66 Splash Park opened with a rejuvenated west end of “Sunny” Jim Bottomley Park, along with paving the former gravel lot, paved walking paths to the Splash Park and parking lot bollards.

The total cost of the project in the park area is estimated at $325,000 and brings a kid-friendly addition to the park.

The project had some delays from its initial mid-July opening due to manufacturing demands from the fixture manufacturer, which posed shipping and deadline issues.

The city council also wanted to make sure that the area had an astroturf surface around the Splash Park to provide a better surface for park users and wet areas that wouldn’t be attractive for mud/dirt operations.

Also completed recently was the Wilson Trail, which starts off Tessa Trail and travels to the North Church Street area or formally known as Highway AF.

This addition also includes the new “pocket park,” or Tessa Park and Tessa Trail areas in which a new restroom is being constructed to the park added in 2017-18.

These projects, many which began in Fiscal Year 2017 but have come to fruition in mid-to-late 2018, all were made possible through the city working to utilize ground that could have been unbuildable but would serve as great additions in the city.

The recently completed Wilson Trail adds some 1.2 miles of paved walking path that will include a bridge over Winsel Creek, which is still being completed by the manufacturer.

“The council for many years has thought about using unbuildable areas along the creek for additions to the park system and in particular calls for these types of parks on the north side of the city,” said J.T. Hardy, City Administrator. “Many of these additions are now coming to fruition with the Tessa Park and Tessa Trail on property donated by Shannon Johanning that included a small lake in which we’ve turned into a park area. When that took place we were able to reach out to K.R. Wilson and inquire about constructing a trail along his property along the creek and he donated an easement to the city and now we have completed Wilson Trail.”

Hardy stated that there has been a lot of work done in-house by city crews and staff to make these projects a reality.

There are future expansions of the City of Sullivan Parks and Recreation Trail systems and sidewalks in years to come, according to city officials.

The recently completed Wilson Trail is estimated to have cost the city $90,000.